I remember back when MSN Messenger was popular… I must have been about 12 or 13, and there was one day when I was on the computer, and my Dad walked in.

I had just changed my MSN Messenger status to “I hate myself”.

My Dad noticed and he said something like, “Is that your status? Why would you write that?”

My answer was simply, “I don’t know, I’m bored.”

He proceeded to say something along the lines of, “Oh no Dani, don’t write that! You’d never want to say that you hate yourself. That’s so harsh. You should write something else, not that just because you’re bored!”

So I changed my status back to my name, or something else.

This memory stuck with me. I remember it as probably one of my Earliest memories Ever of having Felt, and Thought, that I hated myself.

Unfortunately, it is easy to come up with things about ourselves that we do not like.

Hate is such a strong word. I try not to use the word ‘hate’. I have heard other writers say something similar along the lines of: Hate is merely the absence of Love.

The older I become, the More I realize the Importance of Self-Love.

It has occurred to me that it may actually be difficult to Fully Love someone if you have not experienced Fully Loving yourself.

Yes, it is Easier said than Done.

Although, Yes, it is Possible.

Over Recent years, I have Created the Intention to Self-Love More.

It is Crucial to Love Oneself; to Take Care of Oneself, and to Enjoy the Company of Oneself.

The Truth is that our Lives include Many people, many of whom may Come and Go, but we are with Ourselves Forever!

Self-Love transforms into Love for All. When we Choose to Love Ourselves More, we Choose to Love Others More.

To change a Pattern in the Mind is difficult. It takes Work. Patience. Consistency. Believing. One day, the Mindset will Start to shift. I am Confident that One Day, it won’t feel Fake. One Day, it will be Real. One Day, there will be no Effort. One Day, All Day, and Every Day, Loving Oneself will feel Full and Truthful.

Believe Me, I am Still Learning to Love Myself, but I am Happy and Grateful that I am on this Path of Self-Love. I Know that the More I Love Myself, the More I am Full of Love, and that in turn Spreads throughout Everything I Do, and towards Everyone and Everything in the Universe.

Here are some things that For Me demonstrate Acts of Self-Love. I am not perfect. No one is perfect. It is Our Choice and in Our Control to Love Ourselves More, and to Love Ourselves for Everything, with All of our so-called “Faults”, etc. All we can do Every Day is our Best. Our ‘Best’ might change from day-to-day. That is More than Ok. Be Patient with Yourself.

Take Care of your Mind. Feed your Mind with Good Thoughts about yourself. We have the Choice to Feed our Minds with What We Want. Choose wisely. Say aloud 10 Reasons why you Love Yourself whenever you Can and Want to! We tend to be toughest on ourselves. When you get into a Pattern of listing Everything you Love about yourself, the Self-Love gets Stronger with Time.

Take Care of your Body. Exercise. Take Care of your Thoughts About your body. Take Care of what you put Into your body. Fall in Love with your Body as if it were a Statue, and someone Wanted Every Part of You to look Exactly How It is. Accept your bodies’ state, Always.

Value your Time. Value Yourself. Spend your time around people who Value You and who See You for All that You Are, and Accept you for that.

Compare yourself Only with yourself. We all Grow differently. Embrace the Way that You are Meant to Grow. Be Proud of how far you’ve come. Celebrate your Progress!

Accept Yourself… in Every Emotion, in Every Way, Always. Embrace who you Were Then, who you Are Now, and who you are 10 minutes from now. This is a hard one for me – there are things about myself that I am still learning to Accept (like having the feeling of Anxiety), but by being Patient with yourself, Acceptance arrives. Remind yourself that Wherever you are right Now is Exactly Where You Are Meant To Be.

Express yourself. Write. Paint. Be Creative. When you Express Yourself, it is amazing some of the things you can See, such as with my MSN Messenger example. To visually See what Words may come out of you can be Shocking. Get it All Out. What do you See that was in your Mind?

See yourself as your little self. Would you judge your little self? Would you say hurtful things to a child? Never. So why would you say hurtful things to your Older self?

Know Thyself. Do what you Love. Be Proud of Who You Are. Know what makes you the most Happy, the most Proud, and the Best version of You. I find that when I start disliking myself, it’s simple, but it’s because I’m not doing what I Truly want to be doing! When you start living Truthfully and Authentically with how you Actually Want To Live, you will Be Proud of Yourself, and the Love reveals itself. I promise you: Love is always there, sometimes it may just be hidden.

What do You Love about Yourself? ❤

This post started with a story about my Father, one of the first people I can remember to ever tell me never to Hate Myself, and to LOVE Myself. I would just like to end this post by Dedicating it to my Dad!

Papa – Thank You for Loving Me So Much, so that Loving Myself is easier. Happy Fathers Day! I love you Infinity plus all the rest! ❤